Perinatal NMDS 2014-18

Identifying and definitional attributes

Metadata item type:

Data Set Specification

METeOR identifier:

517456

Registration status:

Health, Superseded 02/08/2017

DSS type:

National Minimum Data Set (NMDS)

Scope:

The scope of the Perinatal national minimum data set (NMDS) is all births in Australia in hospitals, birth centres and the community. The data set includes information on all births, both live births and stillbirths, of at least 20 weeks gestation or 400 grams birth weight.

These data have two dimensions, which are the baby and the mother. All data relevant to the birth are conveyed in relation to one of these.

Collection and usage attributes

Collection methods:

National reporting arrangements

State and territory health authorities provide the data to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare for national collation, on an annual basis.

Periods for which data are collected and nationally collated

Financial years ending 30 June each year.

Implementation start date:

01/07/2014

Implementation end date:

30/06/2018

Comments:

Glossary items

Glossary terms that are relevant to this National minimum data set are included here.

How labour commenced is closely associated with method of birth and maternal and neonatal morbidity. Induction rates vary for maternal risk factors and obstetric complications and are important indicators of obstetric intervention.

Used to analyse the risk factors and outcomes by place of birth. While most deliveries occur within hospitals, an increasing number of births now occur in other settings. It is important to monitor the births occurring outside hospitals and to ascertain whether or not the actual place of delivery was planned.

Birth order is only assigned to births that are in scope for the Perinatal NMDS (i.e. births of at least 20 weeks gestation or 400g birth weight). In the case of multiple pregnancies, if one or more fetuses were removed from the uterus before 20 weeks gestation, for example, by abortion (spontaneous, induced or fetal reduction), they are not considered in the assignment of birth order for any remaining fetuses that are born. For example, in a twin pregnancy, where one fetus is aborted before 20 weeks, no birth order would be recorded for that twin. If the remaining twin is born and is in scope for the Perinatal NMDS, then their birth order would be recorded as ‘1 Singleton or first of a multiple birth’. If both twins are born and are in scope for the Perinatal NMDS, the first twin will be assigned a birth order of ‘1 Singleton or first of a multiple birth’ and the second twin will be assigned a birth order of ‘2 Second of a multiple birth’.

In the case of multiple births, this item should be recorded for each baby born.

The first day of the last menstrual period (LMP) is required to estimate gestational age, which is a key outcome of pregnancy and an important risk factor for neonatal outcomes. Although the date of the LMP may not be known, or may sometimes be erroneous, estimation of gestational age based on clinical assessment may also be inaccurate. Both methods of assessing gestational age are required for analysis of outcomes.